Aldimines reaction with allyl organometallics

The reaction of allyl organometallics (8) with achiral aldimines (9) is the simplest combination of reactants, stereochemically, and affords (except in the case of formaldehyde imines) homoallylamines (10) containing one stereocenter (equation 2). These reactions, which typify the general scope of allyl organo-metallic-imine reactions are surveyed in Table 2. Reactions of allyl-borane, -titanium and -aluminum reagents are not shown in Table 2, only because they have been reported in reactions with chiral imines and are discussed in Sections 4.3.2.1.2 and 4.3.2.2. 

Some examples of combined syn-anti and diastereofacial selectivity employing /V-n-propyl- and N-isopropyl-aldimines, derived from a-phenylpropionaldehyde, and crotyl-9-BBN, -magnesium and -zirconium reagents have been reported by Yamamoto et al. Cram selectivity, which is observed in the analogous reactions of these chiral imines with allyl organometallics (see Section 4.3.2.1.2i), is preserved as ratios of Cram anti-Cram products are consistently about 8 1. Anti selectivity is also observed but the ratios do not exceed 7 3. The weak anti selectivity parallels that observed in reactions of crotyl-9-BBN with branched a-alkylaldimines. Since syn-anti selectivity is influenced more by the a-substituent than by the A-substituent of the aldimine, more synthetically useful levels of combined syn-anti and diastereofacial selectivity might be expected in other series of a-substituted aldimines. 

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